Biofuels such as ethanol have seen increased use as an additive or replacement for petroleum-based fuels such as gasoline. Ethanol may be produced by fermentation of simple sugars produced from sources of starch (e.g., corn starch) or from lignocellulosic biomass.
There are a variety of widely available sources of lignocellulosic biomass including, corn stover, agricultural residues (e.g., straw, corn cobs, etc.), woody materials, energy crops (e.g., sorghum, poplar, etc.), and bagasse (e.g., sugarcane). Lignocellulosic biomass is a relatively inexpensive and readily available feedstock for the preparation of sugars, which may be fermented to produce alcohols such as ethanol.
Preparation of ethanol from biomass involves methods for increasing the accessibility of cellulose to downstream enzymatic hydrolysis. There is a continuing need for methods for producing ethanol from lignocellulosic biomass that provide increased control of the pretreatment process such that consistent and relatively high-yielding pretreated biomass may be produced.
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